I'm back from my tour--12 wild, inspiring, exhausting days. It was amazing to reconnect with Chicago, to spend time with my family, to see people from my past (my third grade science teacher! My best friend from elementary school!), to meet wonderful people along the way.

I can't believe how much I packed into my time away--I spoke at my high school (kind of ironic, since I rarely spoke when I was a student there!), taught a workshop at my dad's work, signed autographs next to Kathie Lee Gifford (!), saw Bill Clinton speak (wasn't it nice when we had a president who knew how to put a sentence together?!), laughed my ass off at a breakfast with Jon Stewart, snagged bunches of books, and bumped into just the right people at just the right time. Thanks to all of you whose paths I crossed!

I'm going to be a guest on Writers on Writing with Barbara DeMarco-Barrett tomorrow (June 10) at 5:30pm PST. You can listen online at KUCI. Be sure to tune in at 5, though--my fabulous friend Caroline Leavitt is going to be the first guest on the show. Her most recent books are Girls In Trouble and Coming Back to Me. She writes with so much heart, so much honesty. We just found out we're going to be on the show together (too bad we can't actually see each other--she lives in New Jersey, and we're both calling in.) My life has been full of fun coincidences lately. I'm eager to see what will happen next!